NEWS
14 Concrete in Australia Vol 40 No 1
Early delivery for underpass despite challenges
The final stage of the Perth City Link
rail project was opened in December
2013 and despite it being delivered six
months ahead of schedule, the project
was not without its challenges.
The Perth City Link Rail Alliance
(Western Australian Public Transport
Authority, John Holland and GHD)
commenced work in early 2011 to build
the new Fremantle Line tunnel and
upgrade of Perth Station with two new
features, an island platform for special
events and the pedestrian underpass.
Perth train commuters are now using
the underpass to connect between
Perth and Perth Underground stations,
significantly improving access and
transfer times. However, its construction
posed several challenges for the engineers
involved as it sits four metres below the
water table and runs underneath a major
arterial road and the heritage-listed Perth
Station building.
Work to build the underpass began in
November 2011 using a combination of
bottom-up and top-down construction
techniques.Top-down construction was
used inside Perth Station so trains could
continue operating, travelling over the
roof of the underpass, while walls and
base slabs were being built below.
Alliance Construction Manager
Pat McCarthy explained the various
challenges involved in pouring more than
7500 cubic metres of concrete to build
the 162 metre long, seven metre wide,
and three metre high underpass.
“Piling was the first stage of
construction. Working inside an
operating train station meant access and
space were restricted, limiting the type of
piling rigs that could be used.
“To form the structure of the
Excavation works for the underpass below Wellington Street, Perth.
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